


Attrition

by Leviafan



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Friendship, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-03
Updated: 2013-01-03
Packaged: 2017-11-23 12:04:55
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/621937
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Leviafan/pseuds/Leviafan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There were so few of them left, these days. (Character piece for Inias, with a focus on his friendship with Castiel.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Attrition

**Author's Note:**

> For spnpairingbingo.

There were so few of them left, these days.

Anael, their fearless leader, was the first to abandon her post. Many of the angels would have been less saddened if she'd died. It gave Inias a pang of something he didn't recognize. How painful, he thought, when he could not even imagine being parted from his grace. (How could he imagine what had never been?)

Then there was a respite of a few years, though to the angel of the garrison it passed in the blinking of an eye. But the peace couldn't last— this realization came to Inias slowly, reluctantly, like a shy kitten; now it is curled tightly at his side, its purr no comfort at all.

The prospect of the Apocalypse upset the equilibrium, which had not been very stable to begin with. A traitor in their midst, killing, and no one knew why. Even after he was unveiled— Uriel, the closest thing to a court jester— they still didn't understand. Lucifer had committed treason, and short of disobedience, doubt was an angel's worst enemy. If the angels lost faith, who would be left to keep it? Humans, who for all God's love were still fragile, naive, fickle?

But for Inias, the worst was yet to come. Nothing that was to follow could compare with it, though were plenty of contenders.

Castiel, however, had been more than just his superior. He'd been a friend. So when he learned of Castiel's defection, he thought he might finally have some inkling what it felt like to tear out your grace. For the briefest of seconds, it even seemed like a good idea, until his sense reasserted itself.

Still he mourned the angel by whose side he had served for millennia. From the garrison he watched everything unfold, wanting to join in, but under orders. A single word, "stay," and he was helpless. He'd been content with his orders before, and he still was.

Wasn't he?

Secretly he was pleased when the Apocalypse was stopped. Wasn't this the world God had created with so much care? Wherever God was now, surely his masterpiece deserved better.

Besides, it brought Castiel back.

At first they had no chance to speak together, but it was comforting just having him there, knowing he was only a few wingbeats away. Even from a distance Inias could tell his friend had changed. He supposed rebellion would do that to you, and it was evidently a hard habit to break, because Castiel refused to accept Raphael's authority.

Inias, while on guard duty, saw Castiel pass by, and he hailed him. For a moment he thought his friend wouldn't respond, but then he was at Inias' side.

"Hello, Inias."

"Castiel," he said, acknowledging his friend’s former position even now.

"I am no longer your superior, Inias. You don’t need to bow your head in my presence."

"Yes, I know." A beat, then: "Castiel— why?"

"Because I gave all this up just to stop the Apocalypse. Now I can’t stand back and let that go to waste." He paused, giving Inias a solemn glance, which he returned. "These are strange times, my friend."

He didn't believe Castiel, not then. Not when Anael, defiant to the last, was destroyed by Michael. Not when the civil war rained blood down on Heaven. It was only after Hester decided to bring him along on this one particular mission that his eyes were opened.

She knew their history. Considering what came after, he was surprised she had chosen him, one of the few angels that might try to stop her; but then, maybe she hadn't planned on losing her temper. He liked to think that, now she was gone. Better to think well of the departed, since they could no longer speak in their own defense.

He was glad at least that her blood was not on any angel's hands. The war had left them with a surfeit of red, and they still weren’t finished scrubbing it from the walls.

They might have been there for the prophet, but Inias was pleased to see the rumors of Castiel’s death were unfounded. And when it was all over, when Hester no longer stood in their way, for a moment he saw the old light in his friend's eyes.

Reconciliation— everything forgiven if not forgotten. This was what he had to offer Castiel in exchange for his return to the garrison, but it was not enough. Inias supposed he should have known it wouldn't be.

But now they had a job to do, a prophet to tutor. It would be a nice change from just watching.

Doing. The word sounded funny in his head, not bad, just strange, new, maybe a little wonderful.

Before they left, he whispered to Castiel, "You could visit, if you wanted."

Inias knew he wouldn't, but he still left the door open. That was the thing about faith— sometimes taking it blind was easier.


End file.
